Scientists create a "bionic mushroom" generating electricity



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The sockets are so yesterday. Scientists at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, have created a "bionic mushroom" capable of producing electricity. According to a recent issue of the peer-reviewed journal Nano Letters, scientists have transformed a typical white fungus into a bionic mushroom by supercharging it with clusters of 3D-printed cyanobacteria that produce electricity and swirls of nanoribbon. graphene that collect the current.

During their experiment, expose the fungus to cyanobacterial photosynthesis activated by light in the bacterium and produce a photocurrent, which was then captured as generated electricity. "In this case, our system, this bionic mushroom, produces electricity. By integrating cyanobacteria capable of generating electricity and nano-scale materials capable of collecting current, we were able to better access the unique properties of both, increase them and create a completely new functional bionic system. " Manu Mannoor, badistant professor at Mechanical Engineering at Stevens.

Clusters of cyanobacteria printed in 3D produce electricity

According to geek.com, Mannoor and his colleague Sudeep Joshi tested fungi to determine if they could produce the right elements nutrients, moisture and pH, and the temperature allowing cyanobacteria to produce electricity for long periods. The two scientists printed the clusters of cyanobacteria on the mushroom cap in 3D with an 'electronic ink' containing spiral graphene nanoribbons. They noticed that the amount of electricity produced depends on the density of cyanobacteria.

"With this work, we can imagine tremendous opportunities for next-generation bio-hybrid applications. For example, some bacteria may shine, while others detect toxins or produce fuel, "Mannoor added. "By seamlessly integrating these microbes into nanomaterials, we could potentially achieve many other bio-hybrids of incredible designers for the environment, defense, health and many other areas." For the moment, mushrooms are probably enough to power an LED lamp, but nothing more. .

Courtesy of the incorporated image: Nano Letters

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